Incoming hobbit

[Highlander]

You missed that one, George... that means Mark's got something cab-like in the pipeline...

[Pilgrim]

If it plays as sweet as it looks, you're gonna be in love.

[Aussie Mark]

that means Mark's got something cab-like in the pipeline...

True, currently bidding on an SWR Bass Monitor 12" wedge.

[Aussie Mark]

On FedEx vehicle for delivery

[Aussie Mark]

It's arrived, first impressions from my in-office inspection (my office is not as well equipped as Uwe's):

Control plate has the to-be-expected chipped corner near the input jack
Neck and action seems fine
Nut is not original
No cracks apparent in headstock
All knobs and switches intact
Weight feels in the same ballpark as the LPB-3 I used to own - ie. well over 10lbs :-)
The bass needs a good bath and shampoo

Wash him and bring him to my tent!

[Dave W]

Sounds like there's nothing major wrong with it. Good deal (I hope).

[Aussie Mark]

Just gave it a 10 minute workout plugged in - all the knobs and switches work fine.  My first impression is that this thing has a buttload of tones available at it's disposal - it seems to have beat the Musicman Big Al by about 30 years in the "Swiss Army Knife of bass" department.

Now to scrub it clean and put some Pyramid flats and a set of straplocks on :-)

[uwe]

"Pyramid flats"

You really have become hooked on those, right?  Are they available in Australia?

[Aussie Mark]

"Pyramid flats"

You really have become hooked on those, right?  Are they available in Australia?

You can't buy them down here, so this set is the set you posted me, switched from my SG Faded which is now up for sale on eBay.  My SG Standard has a set of Pyramids that I bought used on eBay a few weeks ago :-)

[Aussie Mark]

Ok, when changing strings I have discovered that one of the tuner pegs is broken (one half of the split shaft is missing).  These are Schaller M4 type tuners, but from what I can tell, the ones that Schaller sell these days have the mounting screw hole in a different location to the original Gibson tuners.  Am I right?  If so, what are my options?

[gearHed289]

Yeah, those old Schallers had the screw hole at the bottom rather than the side. More like the current Gotoh GB7. I've seen them pop up on ebay occasionally.

[ramone57]

Ok, when changing strings I have discovered that one of the tuner pegs is broken (one half of the split shaft is missing).  These are Schaller M4 type tuners, but from what I can tell, the ones that Schaller sell these days have the mounting screw hole in a different location to the original Gibson tuners.  Am I right?  If so, what are my options?

I may have a spare tucked away.  which side do you need?

[Highlander]

I can rebuild the (chrome - not mixed with the gold) set I had on the Peter Cook, if they are the same - I still have all the parts in my spares tin - show a pic and give a measurement of the one you need - never had my hands on one of those babes...

[Pilgrim]

So - for me, who knows Fenders better than Gibbys - from whence comes the nickname "hobbit" for the original source of this thread??

[Grog]

Looking back at the ebay photos, it looks like the "E" string tuner is broken. I may have one from my '69 Les Paul Bass. The difference would be the logo on the grease cap on the back. If I recall correctly, my bass had (3) "G's" & (1) "S" for Shaller. I changed them to a full set of Shallers. The Triumph bass has "GIBSON" stamped on the grease cap. (Nothing anal retentive about me!) I also may have a couple" Control Plate Stiffeners" left. A .015 thick spring steel plate that mounts under the contol plate to help prevent futher crackage.
I also would be interested in how the name "Hobbit" came to be.  

A set of tuners showed up on eBay, with the proper stamp...........  http://cgi.ebay.com/1968-GIBSON-BASS-TUNERS-SG-EBO-/250668768176?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Guitar&hash=item3a5d05dbb0